Business

France: Gasum and PONANT complete first LNG bunkering operations in Le Havre

LNG was delivered to PONANT ’s newbuild polar explorer Le Commandant Charcot in its inaugural call to a French port on 24 September 2021.

Published

5 years ago

September 28, 2021

Admin

Energy company Gasum on Monday (27 September) said it has delivered liquefied natural gas (LNG) as a marine fuel to the French luxury cruise operator La Compagnie du PONANT in Le Havre, France.

The LNG was delivered to PONANT ’s newbuild polar explorer Le Commandant Charcot in its inaugural call to the French port on the 24 September 2021.

The bunkering operation was Gasum’s first LNG delivery in France and marked a further milestone in the extension of the company’s delivery network. It was also the first LNG bunkering ever performed in Le Havre, the second largest commercial port and the largest container port in France, says Gasum.

Gasum and PONANT share the dedication both to excellency and to reducing the environmental footprint of the shipping industry. Le Commandant Charcot, named after the renowned french polar scientist and explorer Jean-Baptiste Charcot, is the first hybrid-electric polar exploration ship powered by LNG. This unique polar exploration vessel is the latest addition to PONANT’s fleet and is set to sail the Arctic and Antarctic regions.

“We have been working on this natural gas powered polar exploration ship project for 6 years and this is already the second liquefied natural gas bunkering operation we have carried out with Gasum since the delivery of the ship on 29th July 2021. These LNG bunkering operations represent the culmination of several years of analysis, engineering and testing to perform these operations safely and with maximum efficiency,” says Hervé Gastinel, CEO of PONANT.

“The ship reached the Geographic North Pole for the first time on 6th September 2021, using natural gas throughout its journey. We are fully satisfied and particularly proud of the technical innovations developed on this ship that have enabled us to achieve this exceptional performance.

“Le Commandant Charcot is the first passenger ship equipped with high pressure membrane LNG tanks offering up to 2 months of autonomy on natural gas, greater flexibility in its bunkering and operation, and guaranteeing enhanced safety. Le Commandant Charcot paves the way for new and more environmentally friendly natural gas propulsion methods and helps to meet the CO2 reduction targets set out in the Paris Agreement.”

Reducing emissions is crucial as Le Commandant Charcot will be operating in fragile environments, such as the waters of the North Pole and Antarctica. LNG is currently the most environmentally friendly maritime fuel available. Switching to LNG removes completely SoX and particle emissions and reduces NoX emissions up to 85%. LNG also emits at least 20 % less CO2 when compared to traditional maritime fuels.

LNG is a way towards a low-carbon future for maritime

Maritime traffic contributes up to 3 % of the world’s total greenhouse gas emissions, which contributes directly to global warming. Gasum is leading the way towards a cleaner future for maritime transport by operating as a premium supplier of LNG and an expert in bunkering services.

“This delivery marks an important step in our cooperation with PONANT and I am proud to support PONANT in reducing their emissions. At the same time, we expand our delivery network to a port as significant as Le Havre. Our services for maritime operators all over Europe are becoming even more relevant, in the light of the requirements of the EU’s recent Fit for 55 -climate package proposal,” says Jacob Granqvist, Vice President of Gasum’s Maritime.

LNG is rapidly becoming more common as a maritime fuel, as switching to it is one of the concrete actions that can be taken towards significantly reducing maritime traffic’s climate impact. As a fuel it is interchangeable with 100 % renewable liquefied biogas (LBG) which means that it can be mixed with and even replaced by LBG. As a fuel LBG is even cleaner than LNG as it can reduce CO2 emissions over its lifetime cycle up to 90 %.

Photo credit: Gasum
Published: 28 September, 2021

Legal

Singapore withdraws remaining 127 charges against Hin Leong founder OK Lim

Lim Oon Kuin, also known as OK Lim, was issued a stern warning and a district court granted him a discharge amounting to an acquittal for these charges on 17 July.

Published

14 hours ago

July 21, 2026

Admin

Founder of collapsed oil trader Hin Leong Trading, Lim Oon Kuin, also known as OK Lim, has had the remaining 127 charges against him withdrawn, according to The Straits Times on Monday (20 July).

OK Lim was issued a stern warning and a district court granted him a discharge amounting to an acquittal for these charges, including those for cheating, on 17 July. The discharge means Lim cannot be prosecuted again for the same offences.

Lim, 84, is currently serving a 13½-year prison sentence after the High Court reduced his original 17½-year jail term in March 2026. He was convicted in 2024 on two cheating charges and one count of abetting forgery in a case prosecutors described as one of Singapore’s most serious trade finance frauds.

Lim was convicted in May 2024 of two charges of cheating the Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation (HSBC) and one count of abetting forgery that proceeded to trial out of a total of 130 criminal charges.

He was first charged in court on 14 August 2020, and was subsequently handed further charges in court on 25 September 2020, 30 April 2021 and 24 June 2021 for his role in perpetuating fraud on various financial institutions.

A total of 130 charges were eventually brought against him for cheating and forgery-related offences.

Photo credit: Sora Shimazaki
Published: 21 July, 2026

Winding up

Singapore: Coastal Logistics Pte Ltd to be wound up voluntarily

Coastal Logistics was reportedly affiliated with troubled Singapore bunker player Coastal Oil (Singapore) Pte Ltd.

Published

14 hours ago

July 21, 2026

Admin

Several resolutions for Coastal Logistics Pte Ltd were made during an extraordinary general meeting held on 14 July, according to a notice in the Government Gazette on Friday (4 July).

The following resolutions were duly passed during the meeting:

As Special Resolution

That it has been proved to the satisfaction of the meeting that the Company cannot by reason of its liabilities continue its business and accordingly the Company be wound up voluntarily pursuant to Section 160(1)(b) of the Insolvency, Restructuring and Dissolution Act 2018 (No. 40 of 2018);

As Ordinary Resolutions

that Mr. Wong Pheng Cheong Martin and Ms. Koay May Yee, both care of FTI Consulting (Singapore) Pte Ltd, One Raffles Quay, #27-10 South Tower, Singapore 048583 be appointed as the joint and several Liquidators of the Company for the purpose of such winding up; and
that the Liquidators be at liberty to open, maintain and operate any bank account(s) or account(s) for monies received by them as Liquidators with such bank(s) as they deem fit; and
that a Committee of Inspection will not be formed.

Manifold Times previously reported Nicholas James Gronow, director of Heng Tong Fuels & Shipping and Coastal Logistics, filed statutory declarations for both companies stating the firms cannot continue their businesses due to liabilities.

Both companies were reportedly affiliated with troubled Singapore bunker player Coastal Oil (Singapore) Pte Ltd.

In 2019, several vessels owned by both firms entered the sale & purchase (S&P) market in Singapore.

Photo credit: Drew Beamer
Published: 21 July, 2026

LNG Bunkering

PIL’s LNG dual-fuel boxship “Kota Elok” arrives in Singapore on maiden call

As the first of 13 new 13,000 TEU vessels joining its fleet, Kota Elok is equipped to operate on LNG and low-sulphur fuel oil that helps reduce our greenhouse gas emissions.

Published

15 hours ago

July 21, 2026

Admin

PIL's LNG dual-fuel boxship “Kota Elok” arrives in Singapore on maiden call

Singapore-based Pacific International Lines Pte Ltd on Monday (20 July) said its first 13,000 TEU LNG dual-fuel container vessel, Kota Elok, recently made her maiden call to Singapore on 15 July.

As the first of 13 new 13,000 TEU vessels joining its fleet, Kota Elok is equipped to operate on liquefied natural gas (LNG) and low-sulphur fuel oil that helps reduce our greenhouse gas emissions.

The vessel also incorporated energy-saving features and digital technologies to reduce fuel consumption and enhance operational performance, as well as a bow windshield to improve aerodynamics, contributing to improved fuel efficiency and lower emissions over the course of long-haul voyages.

“Following Singapore, Kota Elok will continue her voyage on our East Coast Service 1 (ES1) route to South America, calling at ports in Brazil, Uruguay, and Argentina before returning to Asia,” the company said in a social media post.

Kota Elok also became PIL’s first vessel to receive Lloyd’s Register certification for compliance with the IACS UR E26 and UR E27 cyber security requirements.

Developed by the International Association of Classification Societies (IACS), UR E26 and UR E27 are mandatory cyber resilience requirements for newbuild vessels contracted from 1 July 2024.

Photo credit: Pacific International Lines
Published: 21 July, 2026